


Tainted Blood

by ShadeImperial



Category: IDOLiSH7 (Video Game)
Genre: Expect friendship, Gen, I'm not saying Iori is the main character of this fic, Lots of awkward bonding moments, Vampire AU, and politics, but he kind of is, more characters to be added as they show up
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-25
Updated: 2016-06-07
Packaged: 2018-06-10 15:06:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6961957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShadeImperial/pseuds/ShadeImperial
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Iori reluctantly embarks on his first mission as a vampire hunter to help locate Riku's missing brother. What seems like a simple request turns out to be much more than he bargained for. </p><p>IDOLiSH7 Vampire AU featuring vampire hunter Iori.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Iori strides through the wide hallways of the Vampire Hunters Agency headquarters, his determined footsteps echoing off of the unadorned walls. The weight of the long leather jacket, proof that he’s a certified vampire hunter, still feels heavy and unfamiliar on his shoulders. It’s only been one week since the graduation ceremony and Iori remembers when he was first presented with the garment. He was sitting in the front row next to his older brother Mitsuki, waiting for the head instructor to call him to the podium. Iori had finished as valedictorian of his class and as such, he was expected to give a speech to his peers. Soon his name was called and Iori nervously made his way up to the stage. Trying not to fidget with the sleeves of his dress shirt, he faced the room filled with his classmates, and immediately saw Mitsuki giving him a huge thumbs up from the audience. Slightly reassured, Iori began reciting the words that he’d practiced so many times in front of his brother. His voice sounded mechanical and stiff even to his own ears, but thankfully his voice didn’t give away the apprehension that he was feeling. Whether the dread he felt was due to public speaking, or the fact that he was officially about to begin his career as a hunter, Iori did not know. Soon he reached the end of his speech and received an approving nod from the head instructor. Wordlessly, she handed him the simple black jacket and he was allowed to rejoin his brother. Iori breathed a sigh of relief once he was safely back in his seat. 

Soon Iori reaches his destination at the end of the corridor and he quickly snaps himself out of his reminiscing. Beyond the set of double doors in front of him lies the briefing room, where he’ll be assigned his first case as an official hunter. Steeling himself, Iori prepares to be summoned inside and sure enough, a voice calls out for him to open the door. Stepping inside, Iori finds two senior hunters along with a frantic-looking red-haired boy, who Iori can only assume is the client, sitting at a table in the sparsely furnished room. Upon hearing Iori enter the room, the boy glances over briefly and then turns back to two hunters. 

“Why did you call someone like him here?” The boy asks with a look of confusion on his face. He eyes Iori uncertainly, and his words are well-meaning but tactless. “No offense, but I need a hunter to help me and this kid doesn’t look any older than I am.” 

An annoyed expression flickers across Iori’s face, and he opens his mouth to correct the boy when one of the senior hunters begins speaking instead. “He may look young, but we assure you that he is a certified hunter. He wears the uniform of the Hunter’s Agency and graduated at the top of his class.” The hunter then nods to Iori to introduce himself. 

“My name is Iori Izumi, division one, crossbow specialist.” Iori says with trained politeness. Then turning so that he is directly facing the boy, “As a hunter of the Agency, I pledge my upmost support in aiding you with whatever task you require assistance with. If I may ask, what is your name? It will be difficult to communicate if I don’t have something to refer to you by.”

“Oh, I completely forgot to introduce myself!” the boy says while making an apologetic expression and scratching the back of his head. “I’m Riku Nanase! Sorry for doubting you, Iori. I guess I was just expecting someone who looked…uh…more experienced,” he finished nervously. 

Before Iori is able to ask what Riku means by “more experienced” the senior hunters begin speaking again. “Riku, please brief Izumi-kun about the request that you have for the Agency.”  
“Oh, right. My older brother, Tenn-nii, has gone missing and I’m sure that vampires are involved! I need you to help me find him and-” Riku has barely started with his explanation when Iori is already motioning for him to stop. 

“Not to be disrespectful, Nanase-san, but how can you be certain that your brother’s disappearance is related to vampires?” Iori takes in the well-maintained but visibly worn clothes that Riku is wearing before continuing, “There are other plausible explanations for why someone would go missing in such a well-fortified city as the Capital.”

Riku proves to be sharper than Iori gave him credit for and angrily retorts, “If you’re going to imply that we owe money and that he got dragged off by loan sharks, then I highly doubt it. You said you would take this seriously and already you don’t believe what I am telling you!” 

Iori can hear his own voice rising in volume. “You know just as well as I do that vampires have not set foot in this city for the past five hundred years. Perhaps you should take that into consideration before you come to the Agency with these absurd…” 

Iori doesn’t get to finish his sentence before one of the senior hunters cuts him off. “Izumi-kun,” the older hunter says with forced patience, “That is no way to speak to a potential client. Behaving in such a way shames not only yourself, but also the entire Agency by extension.”

Iori immediately falls silent and turns an exceptionally bright shade of red. His face burns with embarrassment as he realizes that he’s lost control of his temper, and that he’s botched his first mission before it has even begun. Iori wills himself to calm down before addressing Riku and the senior hunters again. “Please pardon my transgression, Nanase-san. I promise that such an outburst will not happen again. I take full responsibility for my actions and ask that you blame me, not the Agency.” 

Despite his previous anger, Riku feels a little bad for Iori as he watches the other boy get scolded. “Hey, don’t worry about it! Iori is right about how my explanation sounded kind of far-fetched. Anyway, moving on with what I was talking about earlier, I am certain that vampires are involved because Ten-nii went missing after going to sell blood.” 

To Iori the connection still sounded extremely tenuous at best. It was common knowledge that the country they lived in had an established treaty with the vampire kingdom to the east to exchange human blood for crops and other necessities. This blood often came from the Capital’s poorer residents, who would receive monetary compensation for their donation. While the collection stations were staffed by government-appointed doctors and guarded by trained soldiers, they were often located in seedier districts where disappearances were commonplace. Iori doubted that vampires had managed, beyond all odds, to breach the protections of the Capital just to kidnap an ordinary boy. Rather, he thought it was much more likely that Riku’s brother had been ambushed sometime on his way to and back from selling blood by street thugs. Honestly, if someone had told Iori back when he was a trainee that his first case would involve such a preposterous situation, he probably would have laughed. However, in light of his recent outburst, Iori elected to take a different approach. 

“I see where your suspicions are coming from, Nanase-san. Given what you have told us, I think it would be good for us to look into all of the collection stations that your brother could have visited.” Iori says calmly. 

This seems to encourage Riku who responds by happily saying, “Yeah, that sounds like a good first place to start! Good thinking, Iori. If we head out now, we can visit at least three of them before it gets dark.” With that, Riku stands up, walks to the door, and waves for Iori to follow. Iori waits for his superiors to dismiss him with a nod before following Riku out of the briefing room. 

Once the door had closed again and the pair was safely out of hearing distance, the pair of senior hunters began cackling loudly. Wiping tears from his eyes, one of them turns to the other and chokes out, “I can’t believe such a perfect case came up for us to shove on that upstart rookie! What sort of idiot actually believes that vampires can infiltrate the capital?” The man’s partner howls with mirth, “The extremely dense kind, apparently! That Riku kid is the biggest dumbass I’ve ever seen, and he’ll drag Izumi around the whole city before he accepts that his precious brother was just knifed in an alleyway or something! And even better, Izumi lost his temper just like we thought he would. He’ll have a lot of explaining to do for his little hissy fit and why he wasted so much time taking on a clearly worthless case!” 

The two continued to laugh as Iori and Riku set off on their investigation.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! Thanks for all of the initial interest in this fic. I really appreciate all of the kudos and comments. They mean a lot to me. :)

The pair is almost at the main entrance of the Agency when Riku turns to Iori and starts chattering happily to him. “Hey, Iori-kun, what weapon did you say you use again? I think you mentioned it when you first introduced yourself.” While he is in no real mood for conversation, Iori is thankful that at least the red-head seemed to bear no ill-will about his earlier skepticism. “I am most skilled with a crossbow, but I am also proficient at close-range combat. Is there any particular reason you are asking about this, Nanase-san?” 

Riku ponders Iori’s question for a moment before continuing, “No, not really…I’m just not sure what to talk about to pass the time. I know that you’re only here to help me find Tenn-nii but it seems weird to just walk in silence.” Sighing, Iori tries to keep the irritation out of his voice as he responds, “Nanase-san, I assure you that there is no need to try and make small talk. You and I have a purely professional relationship. It would be more productive for both of us if you were to refrain from topics of discussion that don’t relate strictly to the case.”

Iori is reaching for the door handle when a loud shout of “wait!” suddenly catches his attention. Freezing immediately, Iori knows that that voice can only belong to one person. Both he and Riku instinctively face in the direction of the noise, and they see a person running down the opposite hallway towards them. The newcomer zooms past the antique pillars of the main lobby before skidding to a neat stop in front of Riku, and extending his hand out in greeting. “Hi Riku, nice to meet you! My name is Mitsuki Izumi and I’m Iori’s older brother.” 

Startled by the unexpected appearance of the stranger, Riku slowly shakes the offered hand while processing the situation. The short, orange-haired individual in front of him claimed to be Iori’s sibling, and yet the two seemed as different as day and night. Mitsuki’s energetic exuberance was almost the opposite of Iori’s stifling reticence. Aside from the wisps of hair that framed both of their faces, the Izumi brothers bore little resemblance to each other. Recovering from his initial shock, Riku manages to stammer out, “Nice to meet you too, Mitsuki. How do you know my name already?” 

Mitsuki smiles broadly in response, “The superiors told me what it was when I asked them about the case that Iori had been assigned to!” Mitsuki takes a hold of Riku’s arm and pulls him a short distance away from Iori before continuing, “Don’t tell Iori this, but I’m actually really happy that you’re the first client he gets to work with. Iori has never been great at making friends his own age and I think it would be good for him to…” Mitsuki doesn’t get to finish his sentence before an undignified protest cuts him off. 

“Nii-san, I can still hear everything that you are saying! Just as you said, Nanase-san is a client, and nothing more! I am tasked with finding his missing brother, not with being his companion or anything of that sort!” Iori is starting to turn beet red again and his voice becomes higher pitched from embarrassment. 

Taking in his little brother’s mortified state, Mitsuki hurriedly raises both hands up in defense before trying to calm Iori down. “Relax, Iori, I know you take this assignment very seriously! But it also wouldn’t hurt for you to learn how to socialize a little too. I’m sure Riku would also feel a lot more comfortable if the two of you got along on more casual terms.” Mitsuki then turns to Riku who, not knowing exactly what to do, decides to just go along with what Mitsuki said and nods in agreement. 

Taking Riku’s gesture as confirmation, Mitsuki turns back around to face Iori. “See, Riku doesn’t mind if you loosen up a bit either. Anyway, I’m sure you two will hit off in no time!” Mitsuki gives Iori a reassuring pat on the back and waves cheerily to Riku before heading off again. As the door closes behind Mitsuki, Iori buries his head in his hands and lets out a frustrated groan. Riku winces sympathetically and quickly tries to comfort Iori. “Hey, I’m sure your brother has good intentions. Mitsuki probably just thinks that you are kind of lonely and wants you to…” Iori lifts his head up and gives Riku a pointed look. “I’m sure Nii-san has the best of intentions. I am just skeptical about whether or not implying that I need you to take pity on me and be my friend was the best way to express it.” 

Riku quiets, at a loss for what to say. Iori continues on through gritted teeth, “Please forget what you have seen and let’s try to proceed professionally as though that didn’t just happen.” Iori then throws open the main entrance and begins wordlessly heading in the direction of the blood collection station closest to Riku and Tenn’s shared apartment. Riku quickly follows behind him, careful to avoid the traffic of the bustling city streets. Weaving clumsily through the sea of pedestrians, Riku makes sure not to lag too far behind Iori. As they get further away from the Agency, neatly manicured lawns and luxurious houses give way to much more decrepit surroundings. Having grown up in the outskirts of the Capital, Riku walks past the dilapidated buildings and roving beggars without batting an eye. Iori also seems to be relatively at ease, and deftly dodges around a thief who tries reaching for the pocket of his coat. 

Impressed by Iori’s dexterity, Riku decides that it’s probably okay to speak again. “Hey Iori, where in the Capital are you and Mitsuki from?”

“Our family owns a bakery in the middle quarters. It is hardly as extravagant as the cake shops that you see in the inner districts, but we have more than enough to get by with. Why the sudden curiosity, Nanase-san?”

“Oh, it’s just that you were able to avoid that pick-pocket. Most people who aren’t from the outer districts usually leave a few coins lighter than what they came with when they visit here.” 

“Nanase-san, there is rarely a human thief who is able to match the agility and stealth of a vampire. I would be a poor excuse for a hunter if I couldn’t even out-maneuver a simple crook.” 

“Oh yeah…I guess that would make sense…” Riku trails off awkwardly as they approach their destination. 

The blood collection station is a simple white building that would have blended innocuously in with its surroundings, had it not been for the armed guards posted outside the entrance. From a distance, Riku sees that their armor bears the seal of the domestic peace-keeping force and that they are carrying heavy lances. Despite their intimidating appearance, they step aside respectfully as Iori enters the collection station. They’re about to stop Riku from following when Iori motions for them to lower their weapons, and says, “He is my client and here to aid me in our investigation.” The guards hesitate for a moment, and then comply with Iori’s request. Riku follows Iori inside, pouting. 

“Nanase-san, there is no need to take offense. The guards are under strict orders not to let civilians in unless they have official documentation proving that they have passed a physical examination, and are authorized to donate blood. Otherwise, thieves, as well as those trying to illegally sell blood contaminated with disease, could come and go as they pleased.” 

Surprised that Iori took the initiative to begin conversation, Riku replies back with, “Yeah, I guess what you’re saying makes sense. Thanks for explaining the situation to me, Iori!”

“Not at all, Nanase-san. Also, in the future it would be good to have more restraint with showing your emotions. It is not polite to enter an establishment while obviously sulking.”

Riku cannot help but snort at Iori’s lecturing. “Right, just like how you showed so much restraint when we ran into Mitsuki earlier, and when you were first assigned this case.”

Iori instinctively bulks at Riku’s reference to the earlier fiascos, “What happened before, and this just now, are completely different situations. My reaction, though I admit it may have been somewhat extreme, was understandable, whereas yours is simply childish.”

Riku is not given an opportunity to respond as the two reach the collection station’s main waiting area. Iori immediately walks up to the nurse at the front desk and introduces the two of them. “Good afternoon. My name is Iori Izumi, and I have come here on behalf of the Hunter’s Agency to investigate a missing-person’s report with my client, Riku Nanase. We believe that the victim was last seen at a blood collection station before disappearing. Could you please assemble the rest of the staff here for some quick questioning?”

The nurse glances briefly at Iori’s uniform before replying, “Of course young hunter, please wait here while I fulfill your request. Our furnishings are quite modest, but you and your companion should feel free to make yourselves comfortable. We’d offer you somewhere more suitable to rest, but our other guest facilities are currently under construction.”

“Thank you so much for your cooperation with our search.” Iori smiles as he says, “I assure you that these accommodations are more than adequate for me and my client.” 

Riku waits until the nurse is out of hearing range before smiling and playfully jabbing at Iori, “Wow, it looks like even you can be charming when you need to be.”

Iori impatiently swats Riku’s elbow away with his hand and blushes a little. “I was not being charming. I was simply expressing appreciation for her help and hospitality.” 

The two sit in silence for a few minutes before the nurse returns with a small group of doctors and assorted medical personnel following behind her. One of the physicians, a middle-aged woman with her hair pulled into a neat bun, decides to speak first. “So we heard that a hunter from the Agency is here investigating a kidnapping or something, and that we’re supposed to answer some questions that he has.” 

Iori turns to face her, “That is correct. I am the hunter in question and my name is Iori Izumi. This person standing beside me is my client, Riku Nanase. I have been dispatched by the Agency to locate the whereabouts of my client’s brother, Tenn Nanase. According to my client, the victim had expressed a strong intent to sell blood and was last seen departing for a collection station. It is highly probable that the victim chose to visit this facility, since it is the one closest to his and my client’s shared living quarters.”

Seeing that the group was still listening, Iori prompts Riku, by nudging him, to explain more about the case. Startled, Riku begins to speak. “Right! Continuing on with what Iori said, Tenn-nii… I mean, the victim… disappeared about three days ago. He looks a lot like me except his bangs are parted on the other side of his head and he has white hair. Oh, and his eyes are pink instead of red! Have you seen anyone in the last couple of days who matches that description?” 

The collection station staff whispers among themselves for a few moments, and seems to reach a sort of consensus. The female physician turns around again to address the pair, “No, unfortunately we haven’t had a patient with those features come here in the past few days. We are sorry that we cannot be of more assistance. We wish you the best of luck, and you are free to search the premises for any evidence that could aid in your investigation.” 

Riku visibly deflates at her response but Iori quickly replies with, “No need to apologize. Your help so far has been invaluable. My client and I will do a quick sweep of the building and then be on our way.”

Hearing Iori’s last comment, Riku perks up again and immediately drags Iori off to look at the blood drawing rooms. Iori quickly regrets his words as he and Riku spend the entire afternoon examining every last inch of the collection station. To Riku every stain on the wall or scuff on the floor was proof of a kidnapping and that the staff had been lying to them about Tenn’s last whereabouts. Iori listens to these accusations while impatiently pointing out what he believes are more plausible explanations. The smudges near the examination table were most likely due to spilled tea, as evidenced by the broken chinaware that had been discarded in the nearby trash bin. The scrapes on the ceramic floor tiles were from moving furniture around since the collection station was in the process of renovating their facilities. 

They leave after several hours when Riku is finally convinced that their search won’t yield further results. They’re walking back to the Agency when Riku lets out a loud, agitated groan. “I can’t believe we didn’t find anything! I was sure that Tenn-nii would have gone to that collection station! The next closest one is another two miles away from our apartment!”

Iori quickly motions for Riku to quiet down. “Nanase-san, please stop shouting! The specific details of a case are supposed to remain confidential. We are still in a public area and people could be eavesdropping. I promise we’ll continue looking for your brother tomorrow, but…”

Suddenly a voice chimes in from behind them. “Excuse me young hunter, I know it’s rude to interrupt a conversation, but I couldn’t help but overhear about your predicament. Maybe I could be of some help to you and your friend.”

Iori and Riku slowly turn around. Standing there facing them is a man that appears to be in his mid-thirties. His clothes are shabby just like everyone else’s in the outer districts but they are cut with a certain flair. Iori eyes the man with suspicion and speaks in a clipped tone, “I highly doubt someone of your standing could be of any assistance. Now if you’ll excuse us, I need to escort my client back to the Agency.”

The man grabs Iori’s arm before he can start walking away with Riku in tow. “Woah woah woah, didn’t anyone teach you some manners? Hunter or not, you’re pretty high-and-mighty for a kid. Look, you’re searching for this other kid’s brother right? Wouldn’t happen to be someone that looks just like him except with white hair, pink eyes, and bangs cut to fall on the left side of his face would it?”

Iori wrenches his arm away and is about to tell the man to mind his own damn business when Riku pipes up excitedly, “Yeah, that’s exactly what my brother looks like! Iori, he might know something important! If we talk to him, we might get a lead on where Ten-nii went!” Riku gives Iori a pleading look akin to that of a sad puppy that wants a treat from its owner. 

The man seems to seize on this opportunity. “Looks like your friend’s taken a liking to me.” He says with a crooked smile that almost resembled a leer. “Come on…Iori, was it? Why don’t you hear me out?”

Knowing that Riku will never let it go if they don’t listen to what this man says, Iori reluctantly relents. “Fine. Tell us everything you know about my client’s brother.”

Still smiling smugly, the man begins to talk. “So about three days ago, I’m passing through here on my way to the marketplace when I see the kid’s brother going towards the blood collection station. Before he makes it inside, someone from the crowd pulls him aside and starts talking to him. I couldn’t get a good look at the other guy’s face; he was too far away and wearing one of those wide-brimmed farmer hats. Didn’t look much like a farmer to me, but that’s beside the point. Anyway, the two keep whispering about something until finally the other guy shoves an envelope into the kid’s brother’s hands and points off into the distance. The guy disappears back into the crowd and the kid’s brother runs off to where the guy pointed.”

Iori taps his foot impatiently. “You neglected to tell us the direction that this mysterious person pointed my client’s brother in.”

The man shrugs sheepishly, “Now, now, kid, don’t you know an information broker when you see one? How could I possibly be expected to make a living if I spilled everything for free? I’d be happy to tell you the rest for a fee.”

Riku is already reaching for his coin pouch when Iori tells him to stop. Fixing the information broker with a steely glare, Iori begins speaking in a low, dangerous tone, “Either you tell us everything you know or I will haul you to the Agency’s interrogation rooms. Right now you are guilty of attempted extortion and obstruction of a hunter’s investigation. I’m sure the peace-keepers will be glad to have you in custody after we are done questioning you.”

The information broker visibly pales upon hearing the mirthless tone of Iori’s voice. Deciding that he’d rather not try his chances against a hunter, he begins to laugh nervously and points a shaky finger towards a shabby alleyway. “Gee, I see you can’t recognize a joke either. I was just kidding about the fee. Anyway, the kid’s brother ran down that alleyway over there. What’s down there, I swear I don’t know.” 

With that, the information broker scampers away and Iori can hear Riku snickering beside him again. 

“May I ask what is so funny, Nanase-san?”

“It’s nothing, Iori-kun. It’s just that you can be pretty cool sometimes too.” 

Iori blushes and before he can stammer out a response, Riku is already pulling him towards the alleyway that is their next lead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for dunking on you again Iori. ^^; At least you got to be cool at the end. :P

**Author's Note:**

> Iori got dunked on. Poor bby. I swear this child is my favorite but I need to make him suffer a little. c:


End file.
